Improvement is a form of innovation and it obeys the same Laws of Innovation.
One of these Laws describes how innovation diffuses and it is called Rogers’ Law.
The principle is that innovations diffuse according to two opposing forces – the Force of Optimism and the Force of Skepticism. As individuals we differ in our balance of these two preferences.
When we are in status quo the two forces are exactly balanced.
As the Force of Optimism builds (usually from increasing dissatisfaction with the status quo driving Necessity-the-Mother-of-Invention) then the Force of Skepticism tends to build too. It feels like being in a vice that is slowly closing. The emotional stress builds, the strain starts to show and the cracks begin to appear. Sometimes the Optimism jaw of the vice shatters first, sometimes the Skepticism jaw does – either way the pent-up-tension is relieved. At least for a while.
The way to avoid the Vice is to align the forces of Optimism and Skepticism so that they both pull towards the common goal, the common purpose, the common vision. And there always is one. People want a win-win-win outcome, they vary in daring to dream that it is possible. It is.
The importance of pull is critical. When we have push forces and a common goal we do get movement – but there is a danger – because things can veer out of control quickly. Pull is much easier to steer and control than push. We all know this from our experience of the real world.
And When the status quo starts to move in the direction of the common vision we are seeing tangible evidence of the Green Shoots of Improvement breaking through the surface into our conscious awareness. Small signs first, tender green shoots, often invisible among the overgrowth, dead wood and weeds.
Sometimes the improvement is a reduction of the stuff we do not want – and that can be really difficult to detect if it is gradual because we adapt quickly and do not notice diffuse, slow changes.
We can detect the change by recording how it feels now then reviewing our records later (very few of us do that – very few of us keep a personal reflective journal). We can also detect change by comparing ourselves with others – but that is a minefield of hidden traps and is much less reliable (but we do that all the time!).
Improvement scientists prepare the Soil-of-Change, sow the Seeds of Innovation, and wait for the Spring to arrive. As the soil thaws (the burning platform of a crisis may provide some energy for this) some of the Seeds will germinate and start to grow. They root themselves in past reality and they shoot for the future rhetoric. But they have a finite fuel store for growth – they need to get to the surface and to sunlight before their stored energy runs out. The preparation, planting and timing are all critical.
And when the Green Shoots of Improvement appear the Improvement Scientist switches role from Germinator to Grower – providing the seedlings with emotional sunshine in the form of positive feedback, encouragement, essential training, and guidance. The Grower also has to provide protection from toxic threats that can easily kill a tender improvement seedling – the sources of Cynicide that are always present. The disrespectful sneers of “That will never last!” and “You are wasting your time – nothing good lasts long around here!”
The Improvement Scientist must facilitate harnessing the other parts of the system so that they all pull in the direction of the common vision – at least to some degree. And the other parts add up to about 85% of it so they collectively they have enough muscle to create movement in the direction of the shared vision. If they are aligned.
And each other part has a different, significant and essential role.
The Disruptive Innovators provide the new ideas – they are always a challenge because they are always questioning “Why do we do it that way?” “What if we did it differently?” “How could we change?” We do not want too many disruptive innovators because they are – disruptive. Frustrated disruptive innovations can easily flip to being Cynics – so it is wise not to ignore them.
The Early Adopters provide the filter – they test the new ideas; they reject the ones that do not work; and they shape the ones that do. They provide the robust evidence of possibility. We need more Adopters than Innovators because lots of the ideas do not germinate. Duff seed or hostile soil – it does not matter which. We want Green Shoots of Improvement.
The Majority provide the route to sharing the Adopter-Endorsed ideas, the Green Shoots of Improvement. They will sit on the fence, consider the options, comment, gossip, listen, ponder and eventually they will commit and change. The Early Majority earlier and the Late Majority later. The Late Majority are also known as the Skeptics. They are willing to be convinced but they need the most evidence. They are most risk-averse and for that reason they are really useful – because they can help guide the Shoots of Improvement around the Traps. They will help if asked and given a clear role – “Tell us if you see gaps and risks and tell us why so that we can avoid them at the design and development stage”. And you can tell if they are a True Skeptic or a Cynic-in-Skeptic clothing – because the Cynics will decline to help saying that they are too busy.
The last group, the Cynics, are a threat to significant and sustained improvement. And they can be managed using one or more the these four tactics:
1. Ignore them. This has the advantage of not wasting time but it tends to enrage them and they get noisier and more toxic.
2. Isolate them. This is done by establishing peer group ground rules that are is based on Respectful Challenge.
3. Remove them. This needs senior intervention and a cast-iron case with ample evidence of bad behaviour. Last resort.
4. Engage them. This is the best option if it can be achieved – invite the Cynics to be Skeptics. The choice is theirs.
It is surprising how much improvement follows from just turning blocking some of the sources of Cynicide!
So the take home message is a positive one:
- Look for the Green Shoots of Improvement,
- Celebrate every one you find,
- Nurture and Protect them
and they will grow bigger and stronger and one day will flower, fruit and create their own Seeds of Innovation.